REVIEW: Can You Escape The Elevator Shaft?

For some reason or another, I always seem to wind up in Edward Tandy’s clutches.

Not that I’m complaining at all…I seem to have the most fun when I’m at the mercy of this deranged serial killer who likes to play games with his victims before claiming their lives. But not this time…this time, I managed to best Tandy before he could get me.

Last week, The Basement LA opened their newest escape adventure, the Elevator Shaft. For those unfamiliar with the story of The Basement, their LA location has three chapters that revolve around you trying to escape Tandy’s house after he has captured you. While the Boiler Room was the original Chapter 2 of this saga, Kayden M. Ressel and his team have revamped the basic concept of that room and created the all-new Elevator Shaft. And let me tell you…it is absolutely incredible.

To be honest, The Boiler Room was always my favorite of The Basement’s offerings, but Elevator Shaft has very quickly and easily taken over that spot.

The story goes that, after you are unsuccessful from escaping the basement (Chapter 1), your drugged and unconscious body is dragged into the elevator shaft where you will be crushed to death. However, the man who created the shaft for Tandy has pulled a move straight out of the Rebel Alliance, and left a series of failsafes to help you escape. However, it’s up to you and your team to figure it out.

Right off the bat, Elevator Shaft has one of the most intense openings to any escape room, ever. The Basement LA team waste no time in immersing you right into the story. Not giving anything away, but it was a truly terrifying “wow” moment for all of us as soon as the game began.

And those tense moments continued throughout the rest of the game, as well! While most other rooms are great at setting up the tension at the beginning, it is sometimes hard to keep it up throughout the entire experience.

That is not the case here…the tension continued to build, even as we got closer to escape. I’m not going to spoil anything, but I’ve never been so stressed out or scared in a room before…which speaks volumes about how well crafted the entire thing is.

And the craft is certainly on display here. I have to mention how absolutely gorgeous the room itself is…or, rather, as gorgeous as a dingy elevator shaft COULD be. The Basement LA is definitely known for bringing their environments to life, and this one was definitely them at the top of their game. Top to bottom, it looked, felt, and functioned like an actual elevator shaft.

And speaking of how it functioned, the room is the most technological advanced escape room I have ever been to. They really upped the ante here, and made the most impressive feats come to life before us. After the fact, I couldn’t help but think about how much work they had to put into this to make all of the moving parts work correctly. It really was a technical feat, and something other rooms are going to be hard pressed to top!

One of the biggest things I loved about Elevator Shaft was that nothing ever felt like a typical escape room puzzle. Every task we had to accomplish, every movement we made, it all logically made sense within the story of the room. This isn’t a room where you need to find the key to find the numbers to open the combination lock. This is a room that has all of the elements of an actual elevator shaft, and uses them to make some of the best “puzzles” I’ve encountered. Kudos to the design team for definitely making it all seem real. Every “A-ha!” moment was followed by feelings of triumph as we figured out the solutions. I’ve had feelings of accomplishment before in rooms, of course, but nothing on this level.

Seriously, the Elevator Shaft is a fantastic room. Thinking back on it now, I am pretty sure it has became my favorite room I have ever done. The Basement LA team have really outdone themselves here, and I am incredibly impressed by what they have accomplished.

Do yourself a favor, and get up to The Basement to play this as soon as possible. You won’t regret it.

Thank you to Kayden, and The Basement LA team, for inviting us out to play!

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Jeff Heimbuch writes. A lot. On a variety of things and in different mediums. He also creates the audio drama RETURN HOME (which you can find on iTunes), loves all things horror, works in social media, and is probably writing something right now. You can find him on Twitter and Instagram at @jeffheimbuch.